RETIREMENT savers have been urged to keep their cool and not make hasty decisions amid stock markets turmoil sparked by Britain's vote to leave the EU.

The FTSE 100, which holds billions of pounds worth of pension savings, has crashed by more than five per cent this morning after intially falling by as much as 10 per cent.

But experts have told savers "don't panic" amid the uncertainty and keep sight of long-term goals.

Those who plan to consider taking money out of their pension in the short-term have been urged to consider taking advice before making decisions.

Tom McPhail, head of retirement policy at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "For long-term pension investors who may be seeing the value of their retirement savings falling today, the key message is to do nothing unless you have to.

"We are likely to experience a period of volatility in the markets and uncertainty in the wider economy.

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However, savers approaching retirement and thinking about buying an annuity - a retirement product that provides a guaranteed payout for life have been urged to move sooner rather than later.

Yields on government bonds (gilts) have fallen over the past couple of days, which is likely to lead to lower annuity rates.

Mr McPhail added: "Investors planning to buy an annuity might want to get their skates on; if these numbers feed through into annuity rates I’d expect to see them fall.

"On the other hand, those drawing income from their savings while it's still invested - typically through income drawdown schemes or lump sums of cash - have been urged to sit tight and not touch their pension if possible - or risk damaging wealth prospects for the rest of their retirement.

If savers sell investments when they are at a low, losses are locked in and more may need to be sold to generate a desired cash sum.

"If you have a defined contribution or personal pension, its value will be affected by stock market movements and if you are thinking of taking money out in the immediate future, we recommend you first seek advice."

It's feared that if an emergency budget is called, there could be cuts to pension tax relief and the so-called "triple lock" on state pensions may also be axed, said experts.

Mr McPhail said: "The possibility of further curbs to pension tax relief has now increased, so investors would be well-advised to make the most of the available tax relief while they still can.

"During the Referendum campaign the Prime Minister warned that a Leave vote could mean the end of the Triple Lock on state pensions - annual increases of the greater of CPI, Earnings growth and 2.5 per cent.

"This assertion was made on the basis that the economy would take a down-turn and that public spending might not be able to sustain the expense of this policy.

"The State Pension is expensive, costing around £90 billion a year; it is a very big slice of the DWP budget so any changes to the state pension could involve substantial savings.

He added: "We could also see a more rapid increase in state pension ages."

Investors would be well-advised to make the most of the available tax relief while they still can."

Mr McPhail continued: "We could also see a more rapid increase in state pension ages."